Czech coffee co-op aims to prove that co-operation works

Résumé :

As with other East-European countries, many people in Czech Republic associate co-operatives with the former communist regime. Some still perceive co-ops as old-fashioned, state-owned, unproductive enterprises.

But in the small town of Kostelec nad Labem, in Central Bohemia, a coffee co-op is trying to show that co-operation works. The founders of Fair & Bio Coffee Roasters wanted to process Fairtrade coffee in the Czech Republic, rather than have it imported from somewhere else. In doing so, they are also reviving the co-operative business model.